Romans 7:14-25

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

14. For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
15. For that which I do I allow (understand) not: for what I would (want to do), that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
16. If then I do that which I would not, I consent (agree with) unto the law that it is good.
17. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
18. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
19. For the good that I would (want to do) I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
20. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
21. I find then a law, that, when I would (want to) do good, evil is present with me.
22. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man.
23. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
24. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
25. I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Waiting On God

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                                      " . . .  Their strength is to sit still."  Isaiah  30:7

     Waiting on God is not stagnation, but the wisest and most productive of all occupations; for it is then that God charges our souls with a super-abundance of His grace to prepare us for greater service!  God never places us in any position where we cannot grow in some way.  When we are not sending branches upward, we may be sending roots downward.  When everything seems to us to be characterized by the word  "failure,"  we may be making the best and the most spiritual kind of progress!  While we sit still and patiently wait on God, our souls are imbued with His strength and prepared for greater tasks ahead.

     When the pursuing Egyptians trapped the helpless Israelites at the Red Sea, Moses said,  "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord"  (Exodus 14:13).  When the hosts of the Moabites and Ammonites closed in on Judah, King Jehoshaphat said to the people,  Stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord"  (2 Chronicles 20:17).  Yes, there are times when waiting is more essential than working, and when trying must give place to trusting!  If God has set you aside through sickness or trial, do not be rebellious; it is His way of imparting to you His strength for greater victories ahead.

     Luther Burbank often startled the world by the apparent wonders he performed in the realm of fruits  and vegetables.  What people did not know was that it sometimes took twenty-five years of selection and cross-breeding to make a "spineless cactus" or a "seedless orange."  In the light of this should we be surprised or impatient when God takes a little time to work on our immortal soul so that He may perform His wonders? Trustingly resign yourself to His will and "let patience has her perfect work"  (James  1:4).

"Bread For Each Day"

What Time Did You Get Up?

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

            " . . . in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the Lord."  Exodus  16:7

     Will you please tell me what time it is?  My, oh my, is it that late already and you are just eating your breakfast?  What time did you get up this morning?  Yes, yes, I know you are late but why are you so late? You have missed the very best part of the day - the morning, when all is still and fresh and sweet, when the dew bejewels the grass and the birds sing their sweetest.  I know you were sleepy, and it was hard to get up early, but why didn't you go to bed earlier last night?  You sat up to watch a television show and this morning you missed the greatest show of all - the sunrise.  You sat up to listen to the "can-can" and the "boop da doop" of modern music (??), and you missed the greatest orchestra in nature - the birds singing their chorus at dawn.

     Really it doesn't make sense to stay awake so late by artificial light, that you have to spend three hours of glorious sunshine and daylight lying in bed in the morning.  The morning is the best time of the day, when nature awakens refreshed, when your faculties are at their peak.  It is the best time for meditation, for prayer, for communion with God.  If you begin the day late, all the rest of the day you be will late.

     Remember, the manna fell upon the dew in the morning.  After the sun grew hot it melted.  Morning is the time to sing (Psalm  59:16).  Morning is the time to praise (Psalm  92:2).  Morning is the time to pray  (Mark  1:35).  Morning is the time of resurrection and life (Mark  16:2).

     What a mixed up world!  We have become a flock of bats and owls, instead of larks and canaries.  Tomorrow morning, try it - splash cold water in your face, take a deep breath of morning air, behold the majesty of the sunrise and then read a chapter of the Bible, lift your heart in praise and prayer.  You'll feel better all day.  ". . . in the morning . . . see the glory"  (Exodus 16:7).  In the morning take time for mediation.

"Bread For Each Day"

Mahanaim - The Angel Bands!

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

" . . . and the angels of God met him.  And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host:  and he called the name of that place Mahanaim (or "Bands").  Genesis  32:1,2

     Jacob, after many trials and a long absence, was finally homeward bound to Canaan.  Twenty years before, as he had passed that same way going in the opposite direction, he had seen a wondrous vision of angels ascending and descending upon a heavenly ladder, and had been given some exceedingly great and precious promises.  Now as he journeys he receives a new pledge of God's protecting presence and blessing as the angels again meet him and gather in a guardian band around him.  He realizes that they have been especially sent to aid and defend him in his hour of coming crisis.  What a thrill it must have been to his heart to know that God was still leading and encamping round about him with His protecting angelic hosts.

     Alexander McLaren makes a practical application concerning this beautiful event in the life of Jacob as follows:  "It is in the path where God has bade us walk that we shall find the angels round us.  We may meet them, indeed, on paths of our own choosing, but it will then be the sort of angel that Balaam met, with a sword in his hand, mighty and beautiful, but wrathful too; and we had better not oppose him!  But, the friendly helpers, the emissaries of God's love, the apostles of His grace, do not haunt the roads that we make for ourselves."  In God's way, however, we can expect angelic protection.

     Not only do the angels do service for us in this life, as they did for Jacob (Hebrews  1:14), but they also bear our souls to Glory when our earthly sojourn here comes to an end (Luke  16:22).  Christians, therefore, may well call the time of their death,  "Mahanaim" - for it is then in a special way that the angels of God meet them!

"Bread For Each Day"

Soap And Salvation

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

         "And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?"  Luke  6:46

     A strange paradox is evident in our country today; for while statistics show a marked increase in church membership and there is unquestionably a religious awakening in the land, statistics show an even greater increase in crime and wickedness.  If the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation, this religious resurgence should evidence itself in its impact upon people's lives.  A great increase of interest in religion, without a corresponding decrease in sin and wickedness just doesn't add up.  Can it be that this religious fervor is only a pretext, caused by fear in this age?  A man sneeringly said,  "The Gospel has lost its power, for while thousands profess Christ, nothing much is happening as a result."  But it is not the fault of the Gospel.  It is because people make a profession but have no possession.  Coming forward, signing a card, joining a church - this is not salvation, but mere religious gesture.  It is not enough to say,  "Lord, Lord"; the Gospel must be practically applied, and not merely mentally endorsed.  We fear that too many who say  "Lord, Lord," have never had His blood applied.  It is not the fault of the Gospel.

     A preacher and an unconverted manufacturer of soaps met on the street.  Sneeringly the soapmaker said,  "The Gospel you preach can't be very good for there are still a lot of wicked people."  The preacher was silent until they passed a child making mud pies.  The tot was smeared with dirt all over.  Pointing to the little tot, the preacher said to his friend,  "Soapy, your soap can't be very good, for there is still a lot of dirt in the world."  "Oh well,"  said Soapy,  "it cleanses only when actually applied."  "Exactly!"  said the preacher.  The man was caught in his own trap.
   
     What is your faith doing in you and to you?

"Bread For Each Day"

Work And The Christian

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

" Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart."      Ephesians  6:6

     Man was created by God to be a worker.  Already in Paradise Adam was charged with the care of the Garden.  God has given us minds and bodies which can only be healthy and happy if they are occupied with fruitful labor!  It is true that toil has become more difficult due to sin, yet it is noble, and if performed as unto the Lord, brings a rich legacy of joy and satisfaction.  Even the lowest type of service can be done with the highest possible motive; namely, that of glorifying God from the heart.  Work done in this fashion transforms even the meanest drudgery into a glorious opportunity.

     Christians are always to do their duty fully and carefully.  They are not to be industrious only when the boss or overseer is looking, but must be faithful at all times, realizing that they operate under the very eye of the Lord Himself.  Our labor is not to be done for the applause of men or merely for the joy of accomplishment, but must be carried on for the glory of God and for the blessing of mankind.

     Before the days of Christ a sculptor was employed to erect a statue in one of the Grecian temples.  He spent much time and labor in making it beautiful and ornate, even the part which was to be against the wall.  On being asked why he carved the back part with the same pains as he did the front, he replied, "That is the way I always labor.  Though men may not see it, I believe the gods do!"  Although he was a pagan, he had caught something of the spirit of true, conscientious service.

     Let us meditate on Paul's admonition to perform our daily tasks faithfully - "not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God"  (Colossians  3:22).

"Bread For Each Day"

Body And Soul

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord.  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                                     " . . . I keep under my body."  1 Corinthians  9:27

     The body of a man without life differs in no wise from the earth from which he is taken.  In Genesis we are told that God formed man "of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul."  Before God breathed into Adam, he was merely a lump of clay.  It may have been fashioned in the shape of a man and all the organs may have been in place, but it was only clay.

     Someone has broken down the chemical composition of the body of a 150 pound man, which among other elements contains about enough sulphur to rid a small dog of fleas, enough phosphorous for one match, enough calcium to whitewash a doghouse, fat enough for six bars of soap, enough sugar to sweeten 5 cups of coffee, iron enough for a ten-penny nail, nitrogen enough to blow up a house, and sufficient hydrogen to fill a ten-gallon pail of water.  Total value of all the elements (before inflation):  98 cents.

     But what a valuable structure the body becomes when life is imparted to it.  It becomes the most versatile machine in the world.  It can walk, talk, laugh, cry, sing, see, hear, think, and invent.  It repairs itself without stopping, the air conditioning plant breathes 30 times a minute, the heating system keeps beating at 70-80 beats a minute for 60-70-80 years.

     But still more astoundingly wonderful is the body when the Spirit of God comes to dwell in that person. Our bodies then become "temples of the Holy Spirit"  (1 Corinthians 6:19).  When we are His, our bodies become the members of Christ  (1 Corinthians 6:15).  How careful we should be to keep those temples clean.  Our bodies belong to Him - take care of your body - for it is God's house.

"Bread For Each Day"